Family Pictures and Christmas letter 2012

Dear Friends and Family,

Another year, and yet another letter! At 8 months pregnant, with two little ones clamoring for their turn on the computer, I’m hoping you will all forgive the excessive use of commas and lack of wit and be glad I managed to get another letter out! Here’s our year in a nutshell-

· Delaney turned 5 in August, and her dad and I are still adjusting to having a “big girl” in the house! With a summer birthday and a shy streak a mile long we decided that another year of preschool was in order, but she is now anxiously counting down the days until Kindergarten. She started taking Ballet this summer and loves every girlie moment of it. There is not enough pink and sparkle in the world for this little lady, who would wear a princess dress and tiara every day. She still loves playing with her babies, and has spent every day this past year begging for a cat despite my severe allergy (she says I can move to a different house and Daddy will just order pizza when they get hungry).

· Colton, who will be 3 at the end of February, still drags his blankies (and most recently a nerf football) everywhere. He never misses an opportunity to play football, and on the weekends I can always find he and his daddy downstairs watching the “Go Cougs” and playing football. He does his level best every day to keep up with his big sister and is a very good sport about being the “husband” when they play house. Of course, he also spends a fair amount of time rearranging her room and swiping her toys. He still has a terrible sweet tooth and the inclination to turn everyday items into weapons or bats.

· This spring we found out baby #3 was on her way, and I proceeded to spend the next three months hugging the toilet and eating saltines. This baby very nearly killed me in those early days, so we have already had some serious chats about how to treat Mommy. Baby girl is due to arrive February 15^th, and Delaney is thrilled. Colton, on the other hand, refuses to acknowledge the possibility of another baby in the house. Before the baby plague hit, I squeezed in another 5k, celebrated my 30^th birthday, and revisited the Harry Potter series (yes, again).

· Ryan has had another busy year at the practice, and after finally hiring an office manager, we get to see a lot more of him at home! In March, he woke me up in the middle of the night to announce that he had appendicitis. Rather than going to the ER (like his wife recommended) he opted to go to work the next day. It took 4 hours and one threatening phone call (mine) to get him to the doctor on his lunch break, and that evening he was down an appendix. Never one to let a little surgery keep him down- 48 hours (and a few painkillers) later we were off to Sonoma to celebrate turning 30!

· In September, we braved another plane ride with our kids for my brother’s wedding in California. Colt and Laney were the ring bearer and flower girl, Ryan was a groomsmen, and I was the sweaty, pregnant lady following them all around trying to keep coats on, ties straight, and hair bows in! It was a beautiful wedding, and we couldn’t be more excited to have Jessica in the family.

As always, we hope this letter finds you and yours happy, healthy and full of the joy of Christmas. I count my blessings each night as I tuck my little ones into bed, and we are looking forward to another year full of skinned knees, bedtime stories, and lost sleep!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas,

Ryan, Amy, Delaney, Colton and Baby Girl Wieseler